


Protection

by Dreamin



Series: Fictober 2018 [24]
Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Victorian, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Prompt Fill
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-25
Updated: 2018-10-28
Packaged: 2019-08-07 14:39:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,283
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16410353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dreamin/pseuds/Dreamin
Summary: Criminal mastermind James Moriarty has returned, putting the lady he once courted in grave danger. Marriage to Col. Sebastian Moran, a man Molly Hooper has never met, is the only chance to save her life, but what of her heart?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [afteriwake](https://archiveofourown.org/users/afteriwake/gifts).



> Inspired by the Fictober 2018 prompt afteriwake sent me -- "You know this, you know this to be true." This is a multi-chap so the line won't appear until the end.

“Sherlock, this is intolerable,” Dr. Margaret Hooper said, her hands on her hips. “I am a grown woman, I do not need a nanny.”

Sherlock Holmes rolled his eyes. “Not a nanny, Molly, a bodyguard. With your former lover-”

“Suitor,” she corrected him tersely, her cheeks burning. “We never did anything untoward.”

Her dear friend and frequent headache threw up his hands in exasperation. “The wording doesn’t matter, what matters is that he has returned and I will not risk the only competent pathologist in London simply because she refuses protection!”

“How can you trust Col. Moran?” she asked calmly. “Is he not James’ right-hand man?”

“The Colonel agreed to give us valuable information about Moriarty,” Gregory Lestrade said, finally speaking up after watching the two friends bicker for several minutes.

“In exchange,” Sherlock added, “there will be no charges brought against him for his past misdeeds, provided he stays on the ‘straight and narrow.’”

“And you think he’s capable of such a thing?” Molly asked, incredulous.

“It’s either that or the rope,” Lestrade said. “Moran’s not stupid.”

“But you are, Molly, if you refuse his protection,” Sherlock said firmly.

“Holmes…” John Watson said, his tone one of disapproval. “Insulting the lady is not the way to ensure her cooperation.”

“All it will get you is something heavy thrown at your head,” Mary Watson said, her eyes twinkling. “Now, isn’t there something else you need to tell Molly?”

“Ah, yes,” Sherlock said. “You will, of course, need to marry the Colonel in order to avoid scandal.”

“What?!” Molly demanded, her eyes wide.

“Moran will be at your elbow day and night. To accomplish this, he must live with you in your flat. Our narrow-minded society dictates that a respectable woman can only live with a man if they are related. Therefore-”

“I refuse,” she said firmly, cutting him off. “I will not marry a criminal.”

Everyone started talking at once then Mary held up a silencing hand. “Gentlemen, let me speak with Molly in private. Collect the Colonel and we will meet you at the church.”

Sherlock, John, and Gregory looked at each other, communicating without words, then John finally acquiesced for the three of them. “Very well. Don’t keep the groom waiting.”

As soon as the three of them had left Molly’s flat, Molly turned to her best friend. “You cannot be serious, Mary.”

“It won’t be a true marriage, darling,” Mary assured her, smiling. “You will be legally married, yes, but there will be no marital relations, no expectation of children. As soon as James Moriarty is caught, the marriage can be annulled.”

“But marriage to a violent man, and a stranger to boot!”

“Col. Moran has never committed violence against women. Such a thing would go against his moral code. As for him being a stranger, that is only temporary, is it not?”

“I suppose…”

“Sherlock trusts him, and he is the best judge of character that I know. Shouldn’t that be enough for the rest of us?”

Molly sighed heavily. “Very well, but if the Colonel even thinks about taking liberties-”

Mary grinned. “Not to worry – the four of us will all gladly shoot him first.”


	2. Chapter 2

Col. Sebastian Moran looked over at the other side of the hansom, where his wife was seated. _We’re married. Etiquette states that married couples are permitted to sit next to each other, but I know if I try, she’ll give me another basilisk stare. It’s a miracle I’m not dead yet._ He decided to try a different approach. “Molly-”

“I have not given you permission to call me that, Colonel,” she said, her cold and brittle voice reminding him of all the winter nights he’d spent outside waiting for the enemy to make a move.

“Sebastian. We’re married now, married women do not call their husbands by their ranks.” He reached out to take her hand in his much larger one and didn’t fail to notice her eyes widening with surprise. “And married men do not call their wives by their maiden names so no, I will not call you Dr. Hooper.”

Molly yanked her hand back, glaring at him once more. “This marriage is a farce.”

“This marriage is as legally binding as any other.”

“Only until James is caught, then it’ll be annulled. Despite your little show at the church, I’m sure you want your freedom just as much as I do.”

Sebastian smirked. “If that kiss was a show, I wasn’t the only one putting it on, Margaret.”

Her flushed cheeks and narrow eyes were his only warning, but he was still fast enough to grab her wrist before she could slap him.

“How dare you?” she demanded in a harsh whisper.

Still holding her wrist, he moved to sit close beside her, his hold on her keeping her from backing away like she wanted. “You kissed me back,” he said firmly. “Don’t deny it.”

Molly raised her chin defiantly. “So what if I did? It was part of the act.”

He chuckled, his free hand coming up to stroke her cheek. “Won’t you just admit that there is an attraction between us?”

“There is nothing of the sort,” she said firmly, but her flush belied her words.

Sebastian leaned to murmur in her ear, “You cannot deny the truth forever, Margaret. This predicament will be much more … pleasant if we simply accept the inevitable.”

Groaning in frustration, Molly moved to the backward facing seat he’d just vacated then curled against the window, ignoring him the best she could.

He chuckled to himself as he leaned against the comfortable seat and thought back on the events of the day.

_He’d expected her to show up at the church in some yellowing lace gown her mother and possibly grandmother had worn on their wedding days, with a bouquet of white flowers. Instead, his intended was wearing a simple afternoon dress of dark blue and in her hand was a single red rosebud her friend Mrs. Watson had pressed into hand just before she walked down the aisle._

_The awestruck expression on her face when she first saw him was, he had to admit, what inspired all his subsequent actions. To put it simply, she looked at him like he was the handsomest man she had ever laid eyes upon. It was not a look he was used to. His ginger hair alone was enough to give most women pause, but it was the scar down the length of his right cheek that gave the impression that he was a man not to be trifled with. That a woman like Molly might like the way he looked had never occurred to him until that moment._

_That is, until she caught him looking at her and her expression clouded. She tried very hard to be stoic and dismissive throughout the brief ceremony, while he couldn’t stop grinning. His wife, for however long he had her, was a beautiful, intelligent woman with a passion he could not wait to draw out. When the vicar declared them man and wife then told him to kiss the bride, Sebastian did nothing to hide his delighted grin._

_Lightly grabbing Molly by the shoulders, he pulled her to him then kissed her softly at first. It wasn’t until she let out the smallest moan that he deepened the kiss. It became clear when she kissed him back that she hadn’t had much practice but he resolved to change that._

Coming back to the present, he thought, _If she’ll only let me._ He couldn’t explain his attraction to her, but he knew that as long as she was his, he was going to do his damnedest to keep her.


End file.
